Well, Shit... Maybe Democracy Still Works?

As I wrote in my last post, It’s The Hope That Kills, I’ve been a political nerd and marginalized person for a really long time – and I’ve been a cynical, deeply jaded one for ehhhh… the last ten years or so, I’d say.

But, fuck… it’s hard not to have hope right now, right? I mean, I guess if you’re a neo-nazi MAGA loyalist hoping to get your rocks off on stomping on everyone else’s rights, it probably stinks. But for humans, there’s magic in the air.

I watched a majority of the primetime DNC all four days. No matter what happens, it was history in the making. It was also an incredible burst of joy from the party that has all the best entertainers, artists, and orators in the world. It was like we’ve ALL been holding our breath and the party finally responded by giving us an amazing, wholesome, healthy, and uplifting space to experience joy again.

Some of my favorite takeaways…

I live in California, and we’ve been working hard to reform our criminal justice system, which has historically had some of the harshest punishments in the country. She’s walked a fine line between being tough on crime and kinder to humans, but that’s resulted in progress in many areas. She hasn’t been perfect, but that kind of goes with the territory for someone trying to change the system from the inside.

Plus, we don’t have the luxury of perfect.

The entire Walz family is a big bundle of wholesome joy. Gus Walz standing up and emotionally calling out his dad was the kind of familial bonding we’ve all been missing in our lives. The more I read about Tim Walz, the happier I am that she picked him as her running mate. We need more nontoxic masculinity on display in the world.

Speaking of families, it was also wonderful to see Kamala’s big, beautiful, blended family. Her family and Tim Walz’s family are what American families actually look like. I’ve seen a lot of families come through my spouse’s kids, and that’s what they look like. Families in America do not look like the 2.5 kids nuclear family… at least not anymore. And that’s a good thing. That needs to be reflected in our leadership.

Oh, and NO ONE’s family looks as fucked up as Trump’s. He is representative of only him. Okay, maybe him and Elon Musk, who bought a whole fucking social media platform just so he could troll his trans daughter. Talk about a fuckboy.

The party atmosphere, the raucous and AMAZING state roll call, The Chicks singing the national anthem, P!nk performing with Willow, the absolute sea of women wearing white, linking the suffrage movement to that moment… the FIGHT in the speeches, the FIRE in the hearts of delegates and politicians alike.

…there was a lot to feel hopeful about, but it’s a wary cautious hopeful.

The biggest takeaway for me is that the voice of mine that I previously thought didn’t matter DID matter. It mattered because I wasn’t alone. I wasn’t the only progressive raging at the democrats to do better, fight harder, and stop being so afraid. I wasn’t the only one writing letters BEGGING them to fight back.

I wasn’t alone.

Win or lose, I have to sit with the fact that the cynicism I’ve had for so long about my voice not being heard is healing. It’s a journey. It’s not healed yet. It’s not gone yet. The dems have let me down many times before and my cynicism is my shield against that pain, but uh… so far so good.

I will still be holding my breath until November.

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